Online Appeal Launched

US - Aquaculture without Frontiers (AwF) has launched its online appeal to solicit donations from the global aquaculture industry and interested public to support its objective of alleviating poverty by improving livelihoods in developing countries.

AwF has created an online secure donor page at its web site [click here] where companies and individuals can make donations using their credit card.

“We are asking members of the aquaculture community to host our ‘Donate Now’ logo link on their corporate web sites to help us promote our appeal and reach as many potential donors as possible,” said AwF Founder, Michael New, OBE.

We are also asking the aquaculture community and members of the public to consider making a donation to help us fulfil our objective of working to meet the Millennium Development Goal #1, which is eradicating extreme poverty and hunger,” said AwF co-chair, Dr Barry Costa-Pierce, of the University of Rhode Island in the US.

This initiative is part of AwF’s launch of a new fund-raising strategy to be announced at the World Aquaculture Society meeting in San Diego, California on 3 March 2010. On that occasion, people will come together for a charity dinner entitled ‘An Evening for the Poor’, whose centrepiece for guests will be a very modest serving of the food that is typically eaten by the majority of the world’s poor today, e.g. fish, rice, bread and vegetables). Details are posted at the AwF web site.

“Although there are some in the aquaculture community that have suffered during the past year due to the world’s financial crisis, the world’s poor have suffered more, and we hope that with the Season of Giving approaching, people will find a way to help those in extreme need,” said AwF co-chair, Dr Nandeesha, of the Centre for Aquaculture Research and Development, St Xavier's Bishramganj, Tripura, India.